An innovative sneaker that represents the 20th century.
1900 | LANCASHIRE, UK | Joseph William Foster / Jeff Foster

Reebok's predecessor was J.W. Foster & Sons, founded in England in 1900 by Joseph William Foster, who was also a track and field athlete. Leveraging his experience as an athlete, he developed the world's first spiked shoes with nails on the soles, the "Foster Deluxe Spikes," and "Foster Pumps." At the 1924 Paris Olympics, Harold Abrahams and Eric Liddell, wearing the company's shoes, won gold medals, making the brand famous among athletes.

In 1958, after establishing its position as a manufacturer of athletic shoes, Joseph and Jeffrey, the founder's grandsons, changed the company name to Reebok and began producing other types of shoes, such as soccer cleats, in addition to running shoes.

In 1979, the company made a full-scale entry into the American market. In 1982, they released "Freestyle," a high-top aerobics sneaker made of thin leather and available in a variety of colorful options. It became a hit product, especially among women, partly because popular actress Jane Fonda wore it in a workout video. Leveraging that experience, the following year they released "Classic Leather," a running shoe that remains a popular staple today. Its stylish look and lightweight feel made it a popular fashion item as well.

Furthermore, they faithfully reproduced the iconic shoes worn by the protagonist in the 1986 film "Aliens 2" and commercialized them under the model name "Alien Stomper." Due to their limited production run, they became a pioneer of premium sneakers.

In 1989, they released the basketball shoe "The Pump." The groundbreaking Pump technology, which achieved a snug fit by injecting air into air chambers in the sneaker, continued to evolve and was carried over to models such as the "PUMP OMNI ZONE" and "PUMP COURT VICTORY" in 1991.

Then, in 1994, the iconic "INSTAPUMP FURY," a model that would go down in sneaker history, was released. In addition to its groundbreaking idea of eliminating shoelaces and achieving a perfect fit solely through pump technology, this model gained popularity for its futuristic design and innovative color schemes, and later became a long-running hit with various color combinations. Furthermore, in 2019, to commemorate its 25th anniversary, a legendary prototype model, the "INSTAPUMP FURY PROTO 94," was released in a limited edition of 1994 pairs.